[Commentary] The environmental impacts of the economic package
In recent weeks, the situation in India was a throwback to two historical events. The sight of millions of internal migrants cycling and using any mode of transport to return…
Land banks to help economy post lockdown could threaten poor communities
With governments looking to attract investment and jump-start the economy that has taken a beating due to COVID-19, land banks are once again in the limelight, but pursuing the idea…
Years of neglect led to Vizag gas tragedy
Pratap Singh Tomer is a retired serviceman living in the Ravi Nagar locality of Visakhapatnam, a port city in the state of Andhra Pradesh. In the wee hours on May…
Cheaper coal transport through water and sky could come at the cost of the environment
For over five years now, India’s coal and shipping ministries have been advocating the use of waterways and aerial ropeways for transport of coal. With the Draft Environment Impact Assessment…
Despite COVID lockdown, environment ministry’s expert panels race to clear projects
Even as India is just coming out of a nationwide lockdown due to the novel coronavirus, the environment ministry is considering large scale mining, infrastructure and industrial projects for environment,…
Government pushes for post facto environment clearances while apex court disapproves
Expressing disapproval against industrial projects operating without environment clearances, a Supreme Court order states that allowing such a practice would be detrimental to the environment. While the order was in…
India’s proposed overhaul of environment clearance rules could dilute existing regulations
The national government’s environment ministry has proposed a new set of environment clearance rules which seem to be heavily loaded in favour of the industry. The draft of the Environment…
[Photos] Home in Maharashtra, farm in Karnataka leaves flood victims nowhere
Ganeshwadi is the last village of Shirol taluka in Kolhapur district on the border between Maharashtra and Karnataka. Many farmers from Ganeshwadi and other villages in Shirol straddle between the…
“There is no fish in the ocean”: Declining catch worries fishers in southern Karnataka
January 18th, 2020. It is a hot Saturday afternoon in Sasihithlu, a small fishing village in southern Karnataka. At 12:30 PM, the sun is directly above us, glaring through a…
Forests of the islands: Andaman, Nicobar & Lakshadweep deal with development pressures
They may be hundreds of kilometres away from the Indian mainland, but the rich forests and the biodiversity in the strategically important Andaman and the Nicobar Islands (ANI) face pressures…
